Late 90's Centurion Falcon Sport

[Justin]

Just looking for feedback on these boats, we are looking for a cheaper price point ski tug.

Anyone have experience with the wakes and tracking?

They seem to be a much cheaper option than the big 3 of those years and I am curious how they ski and drive.

 

[Nashotah]

Phenomenal barefoot boat, maybe the best inboard for footing. Slalom, not so much. Wake is very defined and somewhat hard. Tracking is very good. Also, Sanger, unlike the big 3, utilizes wood in construction. The stringers are fiberglass encapsulated wood.

[ReallyGottaSki]

Without the bf plate, they ski pretty good I thought. Ride is nice too

 

Here is 28 off behind a friend's '93

 

[Horton]

wakes likely small but HARD

[MrJones]

Ancient history but…

Years ago most of our collegiate team went to a 3ev class C. I was the only slalom only skier and got a Sanger for second round. Non of us had ever skied behind one. As Horton said the wakes are HARD. It was a 3 round, but only single eventers got to to ski rd 2.

 

Everyone was to get the Sanger for 3rd rd the next day. Flash forward to 8am Sunday morning after a brief lake side devotional by the host club. I said to my buddy “watch this” as our first girls skiers headed for the gates at -15/34. The F bomb reverberated across the water as her knees got jammed up to about naval level! (I did mention in passing the wakes we’re a little firm?)

 

Totally unrelated but in Montana at the moment and saw two Sangers on the Gateway to the mountains lake. Didn’t even know they were still around.

[jjackkrash]

An outboard Sanger has a pretty nice slalom wake, IIRC. But I can't recall how it tracks. Its been a while.

[DW]

@Justin - in your search for a cheaper ski tug, and not sure of budget / years of interest, "off brands" that have excellent slalom reviews include: Centurion Carbon Pro, Gekko's and if looking at older options Centurions, MB's are considered good ski tugs. BOS members can provide good info on their favorite options. Happy hunting.

[Justin]

@DW Ok all good info, this is why i asked. We have 3 slalom skiers, 13 and under, so I am definitely looking for soft / forgiving wakes 24 MPH and up. It doesn't matter to me as I ski the same passes behind any boat new or old.

But I need decent tracking, been skiing behind a friends Tantrum but it struggles to stay in the course, terrible tracking.

Want to spend under $15G if possible

[Justin]

Can anyone comment on late 90's Ski Centurion Eclipse, Falcons? Trying to decipher all the different models online, they made a lot it seems. Want a closed bow tug.

[DW]

@Justin - the 90’s era boats tended to have the 22 off and/or slower speed rooster tail or bump. Mid 2000 the mfg’s attacked the long line / slow speed wakes mainly with flatter deadrise hulls, which puts that option well past the $15k mark.

[robmollysilverlake]

https://www.ski-it-again.com/php/skiitagain.php?endless=summer&topic=Search&category=Boat_3Event&postid=63694

[jcamp]

Or this one.

[Dano]

I own an '89 Centurion Falcon and my dad owns a '97. Both of them are essentially the same running surface. In my opinion the Falcons wake is tough to beat. A lot of skiers comment on how well it skis. Tracking is fine, takes a little more driver input than some other boats but it's certainly not bad. You will enjoy the extra room in this boat. It's a little wider than most of this era, if you just want to ski, take out the rear seat and enjoy the space. Best upgrade for them is the 3 blade OJ CNC prop. Biggest downside is wood stringers in the older ones. Not sure if they moved to composite stringers in the later years.

[OKSkier]

I just had a ski behind Dano's Centurion Falcon and at 28-32 off its amazing - 34 mph.

I've skiid behind older Nautiques, the Nautique 200, new Mastercrafts and his wake is in a lot of ways better!!

[Cent]

Eclips slalom version has an excellent small and soft wake. Flat bottom in rear.

 

They made sone Eclipse boats as more of a cross over that had more of a V I believe. So get the first type.

 

Falcons also have wakes.

 

Have owned both Falcon and Eclipse. Very popular in my experience for wives and kids due to the wakes.

[VermontSkier]

Did this thread change from Sanger DXII to centurion falcon?

[Fastguy888]

I believe my 1994 TIGE SLM2000 shares the hull mold with the same era Centurium Falcons built by Fineline Industries and would be very similar. I have the 454 EFI SKi in mine so probably a bit heavier than the 350's. Wake is one of the best ever for long lines and 30-34mph. This is likely due to 90's boats being sub 3k lbs (2475) and flat bottom rear. Solid bump at 22off where 2 sides converge. 34MPH the wake gets harder than a Natique 196 but are flatter. 32-35 Off is very flat, probably get spray shorter than 35Off. Tracking is not nearly as good as most modern ZO Boats but I think my Tige tracks better than a friends 1994 ProStar. Here it is 15Off 30.4 MPH from a while back when I just started skiing again.

and a friend on open water at 32Off 34 MPH

[RAWSki]

Yes thread title apparently changed. I always admired the Sangers top end + fit and finish yet the skiing was just OK in my limited time behind them. I did own a 93 falcon OB and it skied really well-- a definite rooster at 22 but low firm wakes that were easy to cross. In 2000 I upgraded to a an Eclipse powered with a Scorpion MPI motor and a cruise control. This boat really surprised people. It was basically a tweaked Falcon running surface with longer and wider specs above the waterline. It looked like a big boat but the wakes were super low, soft with almost no spray, even 22 off was improved. The tracking did suffer a little compared to the falcon but with some rudder work it was manageable. So if you can find an Eclipse DD and are OK with the early 2000's step-over open bow (which i preferred) you wont be dissappointed. A late 90s to early 2000s Centurion Sport Bowrider is the falcon with fiberglass construction a great option as well.

[swc5150]

The 90's SLM Comps had great wakes.

[HMan66]

There’s a 96 Prostar 190 with the LT1 for sale in Florida for $12K. It’s on the Mastercraft Prostar Owners group on Facebook.

 

[Andre]

If on a tight budget,i'd still go with Mastercraft/Correctcraft. Just buy 2-3 years older.

Can't go wrong with those 2.

[Justin]

Yes, sorry I changed the Title after getting some feedback on the Sanger etc. I've narrowed my search down to a 98' Lapoint Elite, throttle body EFI, 260HP I believe. Really appreciate the help!

Any feedback is appreciated.

 

[DW]

@Justin - That should be a nice ski tug, verify if wood stringers and if yes, check for any rot. A key area will be at the engine mounts, if they are soft and spongy, bad news. Also, just an FYI as you search, power levels pre 96 will tend to be in the mid - upper 200 hp, in '96 GM improved the cylinder heads to where hp jumped to the low 300's. Ford engines have a similar comparison when comparing standard v. GT-40 cylinder heads. Happy hunting.

[Justin]

@DW They are all wood free in those years.

 

[Cent]

The 98 Centurion Elite will not be wood. Nice boat. A Mercruiser I believe. Reliable in my experience with parts readily available.

[Justin]

@Cent Yes it has the Mercruiser Throttle body EFI.

 

[HMan66]

@Justin if you can find one, the Eclipse LaPoint was an excellent ski tug. Only made for a few years, ‘00 - ‘03 or so IIRC. Don’t see them for sale very often. Good luck!

[Justin]

@HMan66 I had 1 lined up in Fresno but they seem to be ghosting me now. It's a 98'

[Cent]

Agree with Hman 66.

No experience with 98. Might be good. In 95 LaPoint was good May be that hull.